Help benefit review

Ms_manchester

Hi I've received a benefit review letter, and they have asked for my bank statements which is fine as I have no where near 6k above savings. However there is a transaction to a friend who was desperately in need for money (they work but an emergency happened so I lent them 2k which they have paid back on their next pay day. Also they're are transaction showing on my statements from abroard when I was holiday. Will my holiday or the above effects my housing benefits or any other benefits.

NedS

What benefits are you claiming and how long were you abroad. It may affect some benefits, but not others, depending upon the details.

Ms_manchester

Over a month esa and pip and housing benefit does a holiday effect it. Would they stop it or back track payments whilst I was abroard or stop it completely. 

poppy12345

Ms_manchester said:

Over a month esa and pip and housing benefit does a holiday effect it. Would they stop it or back track payments whilst I was abroard or stop it completely. 

For Income Related ESA It's up to 4 weeks so if you went for more than 1 month then your ESA would end. How long exactly did you go for? PIP and housing benefit won't be affected. https://www.gov.uk/claim-benefits-abroad/illness-injury-benefits

Ms_manchester

5 weeks abroard - 

Ms_manchester

What do you think will happen will I lose payment for a just a week or will they end everything 

poppy12345

Your ESA should have completey stopped and you should have reported the changes. It's possible they could have found out you were away for longer than the time allowed, which could be the reason for the contact now.

calcotti

Ms_manchester said:

5 weeks abroard - 

ESA: Entitlement to be paid ESA payment ended after 28 days of your holiday. DWP may be able to make a closed period supercession for the holiday period in which case you were overpaid for that period. They may however treat the claim as ended in which case everything since has been overpaid and will be owed back. If they try the latter you should argue that a closed period supercession is the correct procedure.  A closed period supercession is covered by

https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/1086264/dmgch4.pdf
paragraph 04117


Housing Benefit entitlement will have ended on the day you left Great Britain if it was your intention to be away for more than 4 weeks at the time you left. 

https://www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/2006/213/regulation/7

Regulation 13D

Your local authority may be able to continue the HB claim and similarly make a closed period supercession and treat the amount paid while you were away as an overpayment. They may treat the claim as closed on the date you left in which case everything paid to you since then as an overpayment. If they try the latter you should certainly argue that the correct procedure is a closed period supercession. See

https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/236974/hbgm-c6-reconsidering-revising-superseding.pdf#page=30
paragraph 6.662.

If the claim is closed you will not be able to reclaim Housing Benefit. You will need to claim UC instead to get help with rent.

How long ago was this holiday?

poppy12345

In another thread you said the review is for housing benefit. Do ESA know you were out of the country for 5 weeks? If not then you need to report the changes to them.